kibitzer slang (orig. U.S.).
(ˈkɪbɪtsə(r), kɪˈbɪtsə(r))
Also kibbitzer.
[Yiddish kibitser; cf. prec.]
An onlooker at cards, etc., esp. one who offers unwanted advice; a busybody, an officious meddler.
| 1927 Kibbitzer [see kibitz v.]. 1935 A. J. Pollock Underworld Speaks 66/2 Kibitzer, an onlooker of a card game who seldom plays but frequently criticizes the play of the contestants, and offers advice freely. 1936 Wodehouse Laughing Gas xii. 135 The fiend leaped on to the porch and immediately dispelled any notion that might have been lurking in the minds of the checker players that here was a mere kibitzer who had come to breathe down the backs of their necks and offer advice. 1948 Chess Rev. Sept. 1, I tried to outline several plans of attack, but, in the excitement, with many kibitzers moving the pieces, I was unable to concentrate. 1950 J. Dempsey Championship Fighting x. 52 Keep your eyes closed to the kibitzers or wise guys. 1966 H. Yoxall Fashion of Life ix. 85 A member of the club was sitting watching... I went one down and the kibitzer added, ‘If I'd known how you played I'd have bet..you wouldn't make it.’ 1970 Globe & Mail (Toronto) 25 Sept. 30/6 The spectators held their breaths like kibitzers watching a pinball player try to coax the ball into a pocket. 1970 L. M. Feinsilver Taste of Yiddish iii. 294 It was not until the growth of radio and films that Yiddishisms like Kibitzer, [etc.],..began to achieve wider circulation. |